Radiohead’s trippy app delivers unexpected new tunes

UK-based rock band Radiohead just updated their Polyfauna app, originally released at the end of this past January, with all new audio and visual content.

The What’s New section of the iTunes description says, simply, “Entirely new.”

If you’re a fan of the ambient tech-inspired music of Radiohead’s seminal Kid A album, you’re going to love these new tracks. Here’s a video (below) to whet your appetite.

http://youtu.be/ooRWs6FkVdo

There seem to be four different “worlds,” each with its own Radiohead track. You can tilt your iPhone or iPad to get various mixer effects, or you can, as the description in iTunes says, “You can follow the portal.”

There’s a spinning galaxy-like object, all white, that you can tilt your phone to have it center on your screen. This will take you to each different track. There’s Thom Yorke singing, detuned piano sounds, computer drum tracks, and a whole bunch of ambient goodness.

The visuals are abstract and interesting in their own right, as well; be sure to tilt your iPhone around to hear the various sounds and music within each world track — you’ll miss a lot if you just set your iPhone down on the table or in your pocket.

If you’re a fan of the band, or just want to see this cutting-edge audio/visual app, be sure to head over and download yourself a copy right now. It’s free, and will work on any iOS device you want to run it on.

Just be sure to put on some headphones, because the music is an ambient treat.

About the author:

Rob LeFebvre is an Anchorage, Alaska-based writer and editor who has contributed to various tech, gaming and iOS sites, including 148Apps, Creative Screenwriting, Shelf-Awareness, VentureBeat, and Paste Magazine. Feel free to find Rob on Twitter @roblef, and send him a cookie once in a while; he'll really appreciate it.